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The term lex mercatoria is derived from the Latin to mean “merchants’ law”. [1] From a historical perspective, the lex mercatoria was established in order to regulate the business dealings of merchants in particular places, such as markets, fairs, and sea ports. [2] The distinguishing factors of the lex mercatoria from standard local and international laws are fundamental. Firstly, the rules were and remain transnational, meaning that they are not limited by the boundaries sketched out by geographical maps and legal jurisdictions. [3] However, like the codification of the common law in England which continued to pick up pace after the Norman Conquest and the Battle of Hastings and was derived by a collection of the local laws, [4] the lex mercatoria was derived by considering the established rules through which merchants operated. [5] A further difference from the national and local laws is the fact that these rules were derived out of equitable fairness as oppo

One would assume that the word bribery would automatically raise concerns for those who do not participate in such exercises. However, there is an abundance of literature and scholarly opinion arguing that there may be an over-emphasis on the moral issues that arise as a result of the act of bribing a public official. It has been argued that whilst British authorities and British judges are unlikely to be sympathetic to those involved in bribery, this does not mean that these British ideals and standards should be imposed upon the rest of the world as an accepted norm. [1] Studies have shown that in some countries, for example Mauritius and China, some acts that would be classed as “bribery” in the UK are perfectly acceptable practices in these jurisdictions. [2] Does this however mean that they should be held as legal simply as they are accepted elsewhere? Some of the reasons that the UK, and other jurisdictions that adopt the same stance, are against the practic